Photograph: Werner Schmidt

Thursday, March 4, 2010

A Royal Outing

On 19 July 2010, the Swedish Crown Princess, Victoria, is going to get married with a commoner named Daniel (he seems to have lost his family name when the Swedish tabloids are writing their gossip stories about the couple). After their wedding, they young couple will be rowed up the river in the Royal Barge Vasaorden. According to newspapers in Sweden, the Swedish Royal Navy has just begun to train 29 sailors for working the oars. They will be training rowing for hours every day (so the papers claim) to be able to not upset the boat and give the Royalties a smooth voyage on the river in Stockholm.

The original Vasaorden, which was built in 1774 by order of King Gustaf III and designed by the famous shipbuilder Fredrik Henrik af Chapman, was at that time used for Royal outings on the different rivers in and around the Swedish capitol. Later it was used to row foreign heads of state (see 30 December 2009). In 1921, Vasaorden was destroyed in a fire, but two years later a copy of the original barge was built. Among other kings and queens who have been given ‘an outing’ in Vasaorden were Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in 1956.

The oak built Vasaorden is 18,6 metres long, 3,2 metres wide, and powered by nine pair of oars.

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